


fractured

by Berrybanana



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Spoilers, Canon Divergence - Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Clever Loki, Flashbacks, Gamora Tortured Loki, Gen, Honestly this is gonna be a rollercoaster ride, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Jotunn Loki (Marvel), Kid Mantis, Loki (Marvel) Needs a Hug, Loki (Marvel) is a Good Bro, Loki Had a Plan, Loki and Mantis friendship, Loki is a BAMF, Loki plays his cards close to his chest, Minor Gamora/Peter Quill, No Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Spoilers, Not Beta Read, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Protective Loki (Marvel), Protectiveness, Reversed Snap, Self-Acceptance, Self-Indulgent, Thanos Tortured Loki, tortured loki
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-08
Updated: 2019-05-21
Packaged: 2020-02-28 17:14:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,920
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18760855
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Berrybanana/pseuds/Berrybanana
Summary: NO ENDGAME SPOILERS! TAKES PLACE DURING AND AFTER INFINITY WAR-Loki met someone in the void who he grew to think of as a daughter. He saved her and doomed himself in the process.Her name was Mantis.She thought he was dead.Now, reunited (after a brief bit of miscommunication), Mantis must uncover Loki's history with Thanos' daughters, prove his innocence and hopefully save a lot of lives in the process.





	1. Reunited

**Author's Note:**

> So this makes sense in my head because I've planned it all out.  
> Here, not so much.  
> It will in a chapter or so, I promise.

Wind danced across the fields, tousling the blades of green at their feet. Life had finally returned to Earth. The Avengers watched, tearful smiles on their faces as loved one after loved one returned, running into open arms with cries of joy.  
It was a miracle.  
Every miracle has a flip side, however, and the Avengers had found that in a certain individual that had returned slightly ahead of the rest.   
Thor, at least, was happy.

The sorcerer had appeared mid-battle astride a huge black wolf, someone else (female, with very similar fashion sense) guiding the beast. Behind them clattered an army of skeletons, all screaming battle cries in the name of Asgard. It was a sight to behold.  
Loki and his army had helped them take Thanos down and (after many dry comments and insults to their intelligence) had used the gauntlet to restore the missing half of the universe.  
To be perfectly honest, none of them were sure what to make of him- he was hardly the deranged villain they had faced before but he was certainly dangerous… Apparently.  
Right now, he was playfully bickering with Thor as the Guardians’ ship came in to land.  
Steve still wasn’t quite used to seeing a smile grace the mage’s face, not a laugh slip from his lips; it was unnerving.

Thor elbowed Loki, pointing at the ship.  
“Look, brother! The rabbit’s ship!”  
Loki was just barely concealing his smirk, lips twitching as he desperately tried not to chuckle at poor Rocket who was more than done with Thor’s nickname.  
“I see it, brother. You’ve described it plenty enough.”

Loki watched with raised eyebrows as it zig-zagged through the sky. The ship was battered, paint peeling and the underside dented in all sorts of places but it was _functional_ and that was all that had mattered to Rocket before he set off to Titan to find his family.   
The ship slowly descended until it touched down on the grass. There was a flurry of activity inside, people grabbing jackets, undoing seatbelts-  
Lights flickered and steam hissed as the door slowly opened.

“Loki, can I talk to you for a minute?”  
Loki turned as Steve Rogers approached him, missing the arrival of the ‘Guardians’.  
He looked briefly back at Thor and then nodded.  
“Of course, Captain.”  
He began to follow him, cape flying out behind him, when a voice cut through the air.  
His heart nearly stopped in his chest. He halted.  
The voice was enthusiastic, innocent.   
It was also hauntingly familiar.

He barely dared to hope, but the name rolled off his tongue before he could stop himself.  
“Annis?” He breathed.  
The Asgardian turned, ignoring Steve’s question, not caring about the looks thrown his way.  
Their eyes met and for a moment, the world was still.  
Pale skin, large eyes, antennae. The brightest smile he’d ever seen.  
It was her.  
Suddenly, everything moved again.  
She ran towards him, gentle features twisting into a snarl. He didn’t think she was capable of such an expression.  
“YOU!”

He froze for a moment as she barrelled towards him.  
“I trusted you!"  
Loki’s mind stalled.  
“I trusted you to save him and you lied! You left him there!” She howled, eyes glittering with fury.  
She was taller- older. She was a woman now, strong and courageous, so different from before and yet he’d been able to recognise her instantly.

_“Great, another person he’s pissed off.”_   
_“Do you think we should intervene?”_   
_"Nah, maybe getting beaten up will teach him a lesson."_

“Annis-“ He said again, in wonder.  
She scowled at him and her hand curled into a fist. The gaggle of Guardians gasped, one going to far as to cheer Mantis on. He vaguely heard Thor attempting to call their attentions. A faint,  
distant part of Loki’s brain suggested that (by the reactions of her friends) Annis was not usually this violent.  
“Only one person ever got to call me that and you KILLED HIM-“  
Loki let his illusion drop, his oldest and strongest illusion of all. Pale skin darkened to blue, green eyes brightened to red. Raised lines spiralled down his arms, across his forehead, weaving patterns on the skin he’d once hated.  
“I know.”

Mantis’ face fell and she shook her head.  
Anger gave way to confusion.  
“What?”  
“It’s me, min älskling. It’s me.”  
“I- I don’t understand-“  
He took her hand gently, diverting as much of the burning cold from his fingertips as possible . Trusting that her powers had not developed beyond those of an empath, he wrapped his hands around hers.  
He pushed all of his love and his trust for her to the forefront of his mind.  
“It’s me.”

Her face crumpled. Tears began to form in her eyes and she reached out to brush something from his cheek- a tear of his own.  
“I don’t understand- I thought you were dead. Everything- It’s all so fuzzy-“  
“I can’t believe you survived-“  
“I thought you’d died!”  
“I never thought I’d see you again.”

She threw her arms around him and slowly, carefully, he brought his arms up to wrap around her.  
Tears trailed gently down both of their cheeks.  
They stayed like that for a moment before they eventually broke apart and smiled at each other.

Loki raised a hand and showed her how his illusion worked, showed her how the soft blues faded to white when he switched to his Aesir form and how the raised lines fell. She was fascinated.  
He told her in quick, whispered promises that he’d tell her everything he knew, just later, away from listening ears and spying eyes and as they talked, Loki slowly became aware of other people moving closer around them, talking with weapons held at the ready.  
He stiffened.  
Annis- or Mantis as she now referred to herself as- frowned as she saw his attention was diverted. Then she saw them closing in and her stance shifted to slightly defensive.  
The blue of Loki’s skin- the blue she had slowly helped him to accept- faded back into white.

“Brother…?” Thor asked, cautiously, stepping towards him slowly.  
Loki knew what it looked like. Thor’s chaotic little brother turns up, does something good to make them all relax and then hijacks the mind of the next person to talk to him.  
That and he’d briefly revealed his Jotun form for the first time to a ‘stranger’.

“Thor-“   
His mind raced, desperately searching for explanations. The truth? Should he tell his brother the truth? Was there any point? Would he believe him? Would it matter?  
Just as he opened his mouth to speak, he caught sight of another familiar face pushing through the crowd.

“ ** _Gamora_**.”

 

There was another moment of absolute stillness.

 

Thor’s forehead furrowed. “You know her?”  
Then Loki acted.  
He threw out a hand, twisting his fingers, grasping and tugging seidr from the folds of the universe. It blazed green at his fingertips and he moulded it into two shields, strong and sustainable and most importantly _impenetrable_. One surrounded him and Mantis, the other protected Thor. He would _not_ let her harm them.  
“Loki-“  
“Thor, she is the daughter of Thanos! You cannot trust her, get away from her!”  
He held his hands up in a defensive position, poised to attack if need be.  
Thor just sighed. He let out a quiet, tired huff and rolled his eyes like Loki was just putting on another round of theatrics for the sake of being a drama queen.  
Something twisted in the Loki’s chest.  
“Tandri, please-“ Mantis tried but Loki heard nothing, only focusing on the need to _keep her and Thor the hell away from Gamora_ no matter how foolish or trusting the pair were.

Gamora simply watched Loki, cocking her head slightly. A look of- sadness? Acceptance? Flashed over her features and then it was gone. Around her, one of the Guardians- a Guardian of the Galaxy?- was saying something, something about her being innocent, hating Thanos-?  
No.  
Gamora was not innocent.  
Loki had the scars to prove it.

“Brother, she hates him _just as much_ as we do!”  
That may be so, but Loki was having none of it. He didn’t drop his defensive position and barely held back a biting retort. He knew Thor was gullible but really? Really?  
Even the other Midgardians were shifting uneasily but most seemed to be willing to give her the benefit of the doubt, not even moving away.   
He wished he could say he was surprised.

Then _Strange_ pushed his way through the crowd, ready to defend her. The sarcasm was practically tangible in his voice as he spoke.  
“Listen, Loki, wasn’t it? I’d hate for you to feel foolish so how about you stand down and we don't have a repeat of last time?"  
Loki chuckled quietly under his breath. “I don’t think so, Doctor.”  
Steven sighed and threw up his hands. “Very well-“  
Gold flared into life, forming sparking sigils that circled his wrists. The sorcerer threw his whole body into the attack- an arm thrusting forwards, boots twisting sharply to tear up the grass. It was almost a shame that Loki didn’t have the time or patience to play pretend anymore.  
The Asgardian watched, unflinching, as gold flew towards his shield and... Disappeared. The shield flared gold for a moment, then green, then faded from sight again.

The Jotun couldn’t quite suppress his grin as shock, then barely concealed panic flickered across the sorcerer’s face. Another attack. Another.  
Each one was merely absorbed into the shield, lending it more power.  
Loki waited for the man to stop, outmatched and unnerved, before he spoke.  
“I apologise for the ruse, Strange, but I like to play my cards close to my chest.”  
He stepped forwards, towards Gamora, power burning at his fingertips.  
“It tends to help to have hidden abilities when people turn against you.”

The Avengers jump forwards (afraid without the safety blanket they believed Strange provided), the Guardians rush towards him, his brother raises his axe, they all converge against him and pound against his shield but none can touch him nor stop him for he trusts no one-  
_No one except Her._

He raises his hand and while Nebula screams for him to leave her sister be ( _and he considers it, just for a moment. Nebula was kinder to him than most and he hates to cause her distress but this is something he cannot budge on-_ ) Gamora waits, unmoving.

"You will never harm anyone I care about again." He promises.

Then a hand wraps around his.  
_“Sleep.”_  
The voice is almost tearful. His knees buckle.  
“I trusted you-“ he whispers.  
Then the lilting, mournful voice sweeps him away and all he knows is darkness.


	2. Agreement

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A brief chapter setting up the story to come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a brief chapter to set everything up before the flashbacks begin.

_He raises his hand and while Nebula screams for him to leave her sister be (and he considers it, just for a moment. Nebula was kinder to him than most and he hates to cause her distress but this is something he cannot budge on-) Gamora waits, unmoving._

_A hand wraps around his._  
_“Sleep.”_  
_His knees buckle._  
_“I trusted you-“ he whispers.  
_ _Then the lilting, tearful voice sweeps him away and all he knows is darkness._

_-_

The very minute Loki collapsed to the ground, Strange pulled himself together and summoned a portal. Loki passed through it without issue- _the Doctor couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief at that-_ and landed on a bed in one of the Sanctum’s most secure rooms. Hopefully the enchantments placed on the room would be enough for now.  
He closed the portal just as chaos broke out.  
Perfect.

People kept shouting over each other, asking questions, asking what they could/should/would do. Gamora just watched as Mantis sunk to her knees next to where the prince’s vulnerable form had first fallen, her face hidden behind curtains of black hair. Both Peter and Nebula desperately tried to get Gamora’s attention but her thoughts were elsewhere.   
Thor seemed to be slowly reaching boiling point, unsure of whether to apologise for his brother’s actions or question how he knew Gamora and Strange knew that if he didn’t act now, they’d never sort this out.

He twisted his wrists, orange sparks flying, and opened one of the biggest portals he’d made yet.  
“Everyone in!” He yelled, throwing a beseeching glance at Wong who assisted in waving the main Avengers towards the portal.  
Strange was ever so thankful for magic.

Twenty minutes later they were all waiting around a table, some stood, some sat.  
“So.”  
Thor interrupted. “Lady Gamora-“ His tone was a fine line between apologetic and warning. “How exactly did you come to know my brother?”  
Nebula stiffened. Gamora’s eyes went wide, shock and confusion flickering across her face.  
Tony picked that up but didn’t get a word in edgeways before Thor spoke again.  
“And how do _you_ know him, Lady Mantis?”

Gamora tilted her head, with a sharp little huff, not entirely sure that she’d heard right.  
“How do I know Loki of Asgard?”  
She glanced away, eyes half-closed.  
“I was his torturer.”The Sorcerer Supreme could’ve sworn the room’s temperature dropped.  
  
_“What?!”_

Stormbreaker flew to Thor’s hand and Thor stood, tiny flickers of lightning dancing on his fingertips, irises beginning to glow white.  
“I suggest you choose your next words very, very carefully, Daughter of Thanos.”  
The sudden switch to the title, the threat, did not go unnoticed.

A knife crept into Nebula’s hand and as the Avengers got over their initial shock and began to protest, Tony carefully approached Thor from the side.  
“Thor, buddy, I-“  
“Do not test me, Man of Iron!” Thor yelled, twisting to glare at him threateningly. Tony stumbled backwards, visions of what happened last time he went up against Thor flashing in his mind-  
_Choking, panicking, fingers wrapping tighter around his throat- breathe breathe breathe-_

The situation was quickly escalating and Strange wasn’t entirely sure that he could contain it if Thor unleashed his lightning on Gamora.  
It was broken by a quieter voice. A voice lent strength by its quietness, not weakness.  
The voice belonged to Mantis.  
“What is… Torture?”  
She could guess from the reactions that whatever her teammate had done was horrific. She could guess from the shame in Gamora’s voice that she regretted it. She could guess from the fierce protectiveness of Tandri’s actions that he feared the same harm coming to her.  
She had been sheltered but she had learned things in the time since leaving Ego’s side. She knew what torture was.  
She just wanted to hear Gamora admit it.  
Right before she made her pay. Right before she ran to beg her friend’s forgiveness.

Unsurprisingly, no one wanted to answer her.  
Gamora glanced at her. Swallowed.  
“Torture is to cause someone a great deal of pain in order to extract information from them. Or make them obey you.”  
Mantis nodded slowly. Carefully.  
“Why?”

“My father took a special interest in him after an incident he caused at one of the slave mines.”  
That caused a ripple of interest in the room but when Thor and Mantis leaned forwards the clamour died to whispers.  
“He unleashed an extraordinary amount of power, killing hundreds of the guards in his escape attempt, but in the end chose to rescue a fellow prisoner rather than escape himself.”

“You’re saying my brother was a slave?” Thor hissed.  
Gamora twisted around to look at him, distrust beginning to bloom on her features.  
“Yes. Are you saying that you never asked? That you never asked your brother where he was all of those years before you faced him on Terra in battle? Or after?”  
Steve Rodgers cut in. “You’re saying that Loki was under duress when he launched an invasion on our planet?”  
“I’m saying that it took more than words to convince him to join my Father’s side and even then I suspect he sabotaged his own efforts.”  
Mantis- Annis- watched as they argued.  
Gamora was distrusting, beginning to state that if Loki himself had not told them then it was not her place to reveal another warrior’s secrets. Thor disagreed as his brother. The Avengers disagreed as protectors of the Earth.

“I cannot tell you anything other than what happened after my father captured him.”  
Nebula and Mantis spoke in unison- “I can.”  
They looked at each other.  
“I remember, now.” Annis said quietly. “Only bits and pieces but more comes back to me with each passing moment.”  
She met Nebula’s eyes and an understanding seemed to pass between them.

Mantis turned to face the Avengers.  
“I will tell you what I know of Tandri’s story, but only under three conditions.  
One- you must listen to the entire thing. Two- you will let me talk to him, later. And three- you must accept everything I say as the truth. I will not lie to you and I will not have you insult his name unless he has personally wronged you.”  
Nebula nodded. Cautiously, every person in the room gave their consent, one by one.  
Nebula put a hand to the panels in her forehead, pressing one in until her eye flickered blue and a hologram of a screen appeared before them.  
“I have a few select memories I can share. I was there under Father’s orders, reviewing the finds and the workings of the mines.”  
She glanced at Mantis.  
“I overheard a few of your conversations. Perhaps I could replay them.”  
Mantis nodded.

Gamora exhaled.  
“And I will tell you what happened afterwards.”

And so the tale began.

 

**Author's Note:**

> PART 2 COMING SOON!
> 
> For context (which will all be explained later but might be useful if you missed the implied content):  
> -Loki and Mantis have met before and are very close.  
> -Gamora tortured Loki while she worked for Thanos.  
> -Mantis trusts Gamora because the other Guardians do and is unaware of the history between Loki and her.  
> -Loki calls Mantis 'Annis' and she calls him 'Tandri'.  
> -Loki was in his Jotun form while he was around Mantis before. She only saw his Aesir form once, when he saved her and promised to send 'Tandri' after her. 
> 
> FUN FACTS:  
> -‘Ófeigur’ translates to ‘the one who cannot die’ (will pop up later)  
> -‘Tandri’ comes from the old Norse ‘tanna’ for ‘to quarrel’ or ‘fight’. ’Tandri’ also translates to fire which Loki (ironically enough) is said to be the God of in some interpretations of Norse myth.  
> -'min älskling' translates to 'my darling' or 'my love' and can be used when speaking to your child or partner.


End file.
